Jet-propelled dirigible airships



March 31, 1964 J. P. GRADY JETfPRoPELLED DIRIGIBLE AIRSHIPS 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed July 5l. 1961 March 3l, 1964 J. P. GRADY 3,127,132

JET-PROPELLED DIRIGIBLE AIRsHPs Filed July 51, 1961 y 2 sheets-sheet 2 INVENTORS United States Patent O 35.21132 .EET-PROPELLED DHHGWLE AIRSHIPS .loseph P. Grady, 3411 Tulip Drive, Falls Church, Va. Filed July 31, 196i, Ser. No. 123,940 2 Claims. (Cl. 244-55) This invention relates to improvements in dirigible airships, and has for its object -to construct a lighter than air craft in such a way that is will be able to counteract devastating resistances to its ight with Vease and unerring stability, as well as to be `able to diminish to a marked extent skin friction in 4order to promote more efficient decisive maneuve-rability.

A further object of this invention is to construct an air-ship with internal longitudinally extending central tunnels extending both at the stem and stern, .one provided in the nose of the vessel with a pair of auxiliary branches opening out vinto the atmosphere and designed to render Ithe ship highly durable, capable of attaining safely great speeds, responding eliiciently to all conditions of selective maneuverability, and adapted to adjust itself back to an even keel `against varying factors of resstances, which tend to weaken its stabil-ity.

Another object of this invention is to construct an allmetal airship of the idirigible lighter than air type, for transport-ation of passengers and freight .at if ast safe speeds, under circumstances of lasting stability when subjected to buifeting pressures in the atmosphere `as it progresses in night. A still further object `of this invention is to ccnstruct a powerful, easily manipulatable, speedy airship with ramifications of a character tending to give the crew of the craft control both at the Ifront :as well as at the rear of the vessel. By aid of certain instrumentalities channel-induced currents of air are caused to flow through the craft steadily and economically so that navigational ill-effects of cross winds, lor sudden changes in the direction of wind, are substantially minimized due to creation of -a suppiementary vacuum atthe lfore end ofthe ship, brought about by the installation here of a series of propellers mounted in advance of a similar number of auxiliary tunnels.

Another object rof .this invention is to equalize the pressure both in the front and in the rear of the moving craft for the purpose of eliminating retardin g forces and making the ship automatically respond to .adjust-ments so as to counterbalance any force tending to move the craft up or down. The sudden displacement of 4air through the central tunnel and through the auxiliary tunnels associated therewith is one of the main features of this invention. In iiight the airship provided with the present invention is effective to provide for the removal of head in the atmosphere through the tunnels without requiring that it apply power to the mentioned plurality of maneuvering propellers. This will create a partial vacuum around the ship `and an enormous back pressure, so as .to impar-t a rocket eifect to propulsion, which will yield a lifting force to the craft and eective to reduce skin friction in a minimum in rel-ation to drag.

By reason of lall of the foregoing, it has been found that an airship construe-ted as herein set forth will require less man power and practically no ground crew. FFnere also will be a minimum upkeep expense so that greater paying loads can be transported, because no expensive landing fields will be needed while structural weaknesses which heretofore existed are eliminated.

rthe present invention also effects substantial improvements both at the front and at the rear of the airship so far as is concerned with stepping up propulsion, by means of jetapropulsive units. rIhese `are employed in conjunction with Ithe longitudinally extending central tunnel with which they communicate.

Another purpose of the present invention is to provide a rice form of `airship which is designed to turn around on a smaller radius than is -usual for such type of lighter than air craft, and to accomplish this resul-t without entailing dangerous zbody or tail drift.

By placing tunnels respectively at the front Iand rear of the craft it is possible to impel the airship by means of propeilers or engines located in the front and rear `end of fthe craft centrally of the body thereof. In carrying out this particular arrangement a positive reduction in horsepower requirements has been attained for speedy propulsion, hence reducing the cost of operation of the vehicle.

The forward tunnel structure in conjunction with the selectively controllable stabilizing means, has `the eifect to reverse air pressures for the purpose `of creating ia partial vacuum in the front of the airship, with a suitable resulting .pressure yat the rear thereof. ln this way a propeller force Iis exerted on the `airship due to the reaction of a tforce which is greater than the usual skin friction and other resis-tances to the forward mot-ion of the craft, whereby it is enabled to move vforwardly with increasing speed until the propelling and resisting forces become equal-ized so that a substantially uniform speed is had.

With the above and other objects in view, my invention Vconsists in the combination, arrangement and details of construction disclosed in the drawings and specication and then more particularly set forth in the appended claims.

In the drawings wherein similar reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the drawings,

fFGURE l is a side elevation of my invention,

FIGURE 2 is a fragmentary vertical sectional View of the rear part of .the dirigible airship,

VlliGU-Rii 3 is a front elevation of the airship, and

FIGURE 4 is a Iragmenal vertical elevation of the front part of the airship.

Referring to the drawings, which are merely illustrative of my invention FlGURE l shows the nose of the airship at 10, rounded out semispherically at the front end thereof, the main body portion or shell thereof, between its ends, being tubular and `hollow longitudinally as at 13, the cabin l2 extending longitudinally beneath :the main body thereof. A circumferentially extending outwardly disposed series of jet propulsive units 14 project out of the airship shell il of the airship. They Yconverge forwardly, their cylinders l5 being disposed diagonally with respect to the longitudinal axis of the airship. They brace like struts the semispherical nose of the craft internally. The inlet ends of these jet propulsive units curve around as at 16, which shows that they are deflected,

Vand as shown in FIGURES l1 and 3 caused to open out .into the atmosphere.

Their discharge ends are located externally at the juncture between Ithe periphery of the shell and its semispherical portion. A centraily disposed air tunnel i8 is in the direct axial line of the craft longitudinally thereof, being located inside the nose at the front of the machine, in the hollow interior 18a of which is located a fan motor 'i9 upon which is xed a fan Ztl for rotation. A plurality of forwardly divergent tubular branches 2l extend from the air tunnel 18 circumferentially, which have inlet openings B in which are operatively located fans 22. The air tunnel proper opens out into the atmosphere at 2da, FIGURE 3. it will be seen that the jet propulsive unit-s l5 project tangentially out of the body l1 towards the rear of the airship, tapering into the atmosphere, all of these tapering `discharge portions of the units i5' diverging with respect to the axis of the craft. FIGURE l shows that certain of these propulsive units, as at 23, extend bodily outside of the airship body 1l and prolong the exposed portion of the propulsive unit by means of nozzles.

The main shell body ll of the airship continues in a straight line to a point short of the rear end where an integral frusto-conical tubular tapering tail section 24 is provided, whose hollow interior is `designated 25, the terminal narrow portion of this frusto-conical portion of tail 24 serving to provide the outlet opening of passage 27, which allows communication between outside air and inside hot gases emerging out of this portion of tail 24. A power plant is positioned in said front conical tail or extension 24, which may be made integral with this outlet formation to provide a rear air tunnel chamber 2S which is in the same central concentric aligning disposition with respect to the front air tunnel i8. It forms a straight line continuation of an air passageway open to the atmosphere at 27 and flaring at its opposite inner end as at 29, interiorly of which is its air intake.

The power plant also provides a circumferentially arranged series of jet propulsive units which connect convergingly so as to form a juncture with an air tunnel section 28; so as to project divergingly out of the conical tail 24. These jet propulsive units Sti end in tapering nozzles 3l that slope in a direction counter to that part of the tail which recedes therefrom towards the outlet opening 27 of the airship. In this way they criss-cross the oblique line of the periphery of the tail extension of the shell body. At their inner ends these jet propulsive units merge with a tubular air tunnel section "48 disposed also in line centrally with the other air tunnel 28, the air tunnel 4S, however, being larger in diameter relatively to tunnel section 28, FIGURE 2. The jet propulsive units or cylinders are located in the narrow tapering portion of the tail extension, while the air tunnel 4S is located in the widest portion thereof.

The power plant is formed with an intermediate air expansion cell 34a between air tunnel 48, the air chamber 28 and the inlet ends of the jet-propulsive units.

These inlets of the jet propulsive units 30 are designated 32 and communicate with the interior of the air tunnel section 4S. In these irdet sections of the propulsive units are located suitable swivellable dampers 33, and spaced annularly within the tunnel section 28 is an elongated main jet propulsive unit chamber 3d, the peripheral intervening space thereof lforming a channel 35 that extends toward and down around the conical terminal of this chamber at its outer end. In this reduced part of the terminal is located a duct cylinder A, disposed concentrically inside chamber 34. This duct cylinder also tapers conically as at C, so as to project up against a partition wall 37, which, but for the air ports 38 formed therein, closes this end of the chamber 3d. This partition wall y37 is located a slight distance in back of the discharge outlet 27 of the airship, and in the space in advance of it; within the tunnel section 23 is fixed a tubular discharge ferrule D which has its tubular body formed concave longitudinally so as `to flare at opposite ends, one of which ends abuts the partition wall 37. Operatively positioned with respect to the ports 3S in the partition wall 37 are check or iiap valves d. 'Elongated pipes 41 extend supportedly alongside tunnel section 2S, having offset connections 42 to a jet propulsive unit 30.

Connected operatively with tunnel section it are radially and forwardly projecting conduits 4d which diverge as at i5 (FTGURE 2) from their point of juncture with air tunnel 48 at their inner ends. These conduits extend circumferentially so that their arrangement may tend to promote better stability of the vessel as hereinafter explained. They have inlets 46 that project outside of the body il of the craft. They face the front end of the vessel so that their inlets 46 point in the direction of the projecting outlet ends of jet propulsive units 14 at the front of the airship.

In tunnel section 4S, adjacent to the communicating inner ends of the conduits fifi is mounted a fan Sti on a shaft of a motor 49. The rudders of the craft are designated Si, controlled by operating rods 52 in conjunction with which are the accessory fins 53. The tins 53 and rudders i constitute steering vanes. It will be seen that the combined rudders and tins provide a continuous controlling device that continue the straight line conical disposition of the main body 11 of the airship, starting from a point located in the widest diameter of the conical tail 24 and ending midway thereof, so that the circular series of jet propulsive units 3d are disposed between these rudders (FIGURE 2). The airship thus described is a powerful vehicle of aerial transportation. It possesses important stabilizing instrumentalities and power-c0ntrolling means. The arrangement of its parts is such that the crew who direct the course of the vessel are fully enabled to operate them for the purpose of counteracting unfavorable atmospheric conditions. The fact that these parts are located at the extreme opposite ends of the airship is a factor that assures control of the vessel parts collectively, independently or separately at each end of the craft.

The jet-propulsive units 14 at the front of the airship, and those at 3i) at the rear end thereof slope outside of the shell 11 of the airship, the first group sloping in the same direction as the second group; each group of jetpropulsive units being connected to a tunnel section in turn, the one at the front of the craft being designated 1S and at the rear 48. Each tunnel section contains a motor driven fan 19 at the front of the craft and 5t) at the rear thereof. However, the oppositely converging conduits 44 associated with tunnel section 43 have their nozzles also sloping outside of the airship shell Il and point in a direction counter to that of the exposed sloping ends of the jet propulsive units of the front and rear groups. The suction created by rotation of the fan injects a stream of air from the atmosphere through the nozzle inlets 46 of the conduits 44, thence through tunnel section 48 as shown by arrows in FIGURE 2. There is a pneumatic path of this stream of air of a high velocity created by the agitated air displaced by the airship in its forward motion. This stream of air is in transit into the group of jet propelled units 30 at the rear part of the craft, and is drawn in rapidly when the dampers 33 in these units 30 are opened for this purpose.

The fans 22 outside of the nose of the airship are, by the flaring front portions 21 of the tunnel section 13 caused to be located adjacent to the inlet ends of the jet propulsive units 14, so, in revolving, as the vessel is in motion, rapidly under jet propulsion, these fans will generate air in forced drafts and pressure, inside of jet propulsive units 14. This air, when impacted upon by the propeller fans 22, being already under agitation when and as displaced by the moving body of the airship, set up a factor of equilibrium in conjunction with parts now to be explained. The nozzle 14a of FIGURE 1, of the indicated jet propulsive unit, which connects with tunnel section 1S at its rear, projects beyond the other adjacent jet-propulsive units 14 and is also supplied with a forced draft of air entering the central outwardly flaring inlets 21 of the tunnel section 18, brought about by the suction of fan 20 rotating in chamber 18a of this tunnel section. Due to the extra projection of nozzle 23 its free end avoids the cabin 12 of the airship thereadjacent, further, the elongated pipes fil at the rear of the vessel, also connected with the combustion zone of the outwardly extending and diverging jet propulsive units 3i? are communicative of an exchange of fluid under pressure, taking effect in the tubular discharge ferrule D at the rear end of the airship, at points where the inrushing air thereinto, allowed to enter by the unseating of check valves lit). This assembly of all parts shows at the front of the vessel oblique air lines through the adjacent jet propulsive units M, and in the confines of the frusto-conical part 24 forming the rear terminal of the airship. The air lines to the rear tunnel section 2S are rectilinear, as the air flows along the central longitudinal axis of the vessel. However the air line to the tunnel section il?! at the front of the craft into the jet propulsive unit 14a, is also in line with the last mentioned air line at the rear of the airs. ip. Hence in all of i'i these tunnel sections 13 and Sit the air lines are located along the longitudinal axis of the craft and in line with Vone another. This makes in favor of presenting forcible streams of air along a line of least resistance to maintaining the vessel at an even keel as it progresses forwardly. By arranging the jet-propulsive units in front and also in rear of the airship in a circular series enveloping the shell of the craft, a tendency is promoted for it to maintain its balance and stability in spite of retarding atmospheric influences that may exist, since the hot gases impacting .the atmosphere at equal distances circumferentially, aided by the direct linear coaxial thrust of the forced vacuum `created air lines cooperate to counterbalance any force tending to move the vessel up or down.

The body 11 of the airship is of an all-metal construction, made lighter than air in buoyancybeing lighter than rubberized fabric and it possesses in comparison, additional strength. The nose 19 of the airship, is well rounded out semispherically in comparison with the tapering rear of the airship body. Propulsion of the vessel takes place either under a cold jet of exhaust air, or as a result of hot gases of jet propulsion. Propulsion is controlled automatically along a predetermined course. It is also controlled manually, as by operating some but not all of the propellers-or fans 22. .It is found that the high powered air inlets and outlets at the opposite ends of the airship eliminate head-on resistances, reduces skin friction, and eliminates vacuum at the rear end of the vessel. Control is thus given at both ends of the airship.

The series of outside engine-operated fans or propellers 22, carried by the tunnel 18, llaringly contribute to relieve head-on resistances in the flight of the vessel and it also facilitates steering of the ship in and out of head winds. In coordination with the rear tunnel and associated jet propulsive units, these propellers control steering operation at the bow end of the vessel. This will break head winds where otherwise they might tend to batter and cause forward pull upon the ship. Greater speed is imparted to the ship as a greater volume of air in motion, constrained to serve to prevent swerving of the airship, is injected into both the nose and into the rear end of the craft, as a consequence. In this Way maneuverability is attained economically, and better control is had on part of the operator. The attendants can control the air ow at all times and conditions of the weather; this will prevent drift of the craft in flight. The crew also can thus utilize head-on pressures to aid the forward propulsion of the craft. This is accomplished by manipulating in a timely manner the propellers 22 in front of the vessel; by operating the jet propulsion units in any order of sequence; by operating the inflow of air into the jet media through the dampers located in their cylinders, and by controlling the stabilizing rudders as well. The jet propulsive unit 14 shown in the lower front part of FIGURE. 4 is made longer at 23 for the purpose of avoiding the adjacent part of the cabin 12.

The several jet-propulsive units operate in such a manner so they will overcome and prevent skin friction upon the external surface of the craft. The air, travelling through the air tunnels, superinduced by the rotation of the propellers at the outside surface of the nose of the craft-all rotating or merely those under special control of the crew-tends to maintain the stability of the craft at all times since streams of air operate at both ends of the airship to keep the ships course headed right as called for predeterminedly. Unbalance of the craft is avoided.

The vessel is perfectly round; the absence of free edges, projections and seams has the important effect of avoiding for the ship obstacles presented by the impact of wind pressure at such points while the cabin itself is an integral part of the vessel, having oblique ends, while the body of the vessel extends coextensively between the stabilizing instrumentalities at both sides of the craft. The active power of the motors in the air tunnels which carry the propellers or fans 22 is effective to drive the air through the tunnels, causing suction at the stem, and push or rocket jet power at the stern of the vessel. This is just the reverse of the action attained by airships the way they are now constructed; where the pressure against the stem of the vessel and the Vacuum at the stern retard forward movement of the vessel to a considerable extent.

The crew is given control at both ends of the airship during its fiight. The fans 22 create a supplementary vacuum at the front of the airship and render abortive the effects of cross winds, or change of direction of the airship or of the Wind. This creates a general vacuum at the forepart of the vessel, coordinated with the specific propulsive forces exerted at the rear thereof; and, as a consequence a greater speed is imparted to the airship of the lighter than air craft. Separate control is given to the fans 22 so they kare not affected by the stoppage of any particular jet propulsive cylinder unit. Control of the center of gravity of the craft While in fiight is due to the foregoing automatic assembly of coordinative parts. This is effected by shifting the crews operative control, for these parts at either end of the machine.

The divergent conduits 44 suck in atmospheric air; their outlets are operatively connected to the tunnel section 48. The ship is always under full control of the crew. It can rise perpendicularly in ascending or descending by cutting off certain jet propulsive units while maintaining operation of others. No ground crew is necessary to attend to mooring the vessel when it effects a landing. The pressure of induced currents of air is equalized at both the front and rear end of the vessel. The jet-impelled fiuid pressure exerted in the discharge end of the nozzles 31 of the jet-propulsive units 30 acquire the added driving potency of the distinct force of pressure exerted by the cornpressed motive air or fuel conducted through the air tunnels. The location of the forcible flow of air or compressed uid emerging through the air tunnels is immediately in advance of the impact points of the airship. Such equalization of the motive pressures at the opposite ends of the vessel is what gives the eflicient stabilizing balance of the craft.

Each jet-propelled unit should be supplied with multiple-stage compression elements. Since the nozzles 31 diverge at the rear of the craft but diagonally of its longitudinal axis, the jet gases discharged here deliver with strong forwardly directed thrust a push against the body of the vessel that imparts a movement forwardly. Since the tunnels are continuously removing well the stress of such a large volume of air from the space immediately in front of the airship, the pressure here is reduced and shunted rearwardly of the vessel, but internally. Hence the usual retarding force and factor is obviated. The auxiliary suction induced by the fans 22 contributing jets of air which enter the air supply tubes 16, enhance this drive of the high pressure fluids to the rear of the vessel outof the discharge end of the rear nozzles of the craft at 27. The compressed air stream having left the rear end of the air tunnel 28 follows the course indicated by the arrows of FIGURE 2; it is cold and because of this, when some of it bypasses through the channel 35 of the air tunnel 28 and enters the venturi ferrule, the latter is superheated due to the circular series of pipe terminals 41 projecting into it; as it is evident that the pipes 41 have the connections 42 which enter the gas-filled zones of these jet propulsive units.

Since impelling forces are applied to the airship at its front and rear parts at the same time the stresses in the skeleton of the craft are greatly reduced, and this enhances the stability of the vessel.

To steer so as to change the direction of movement of the craft is accomplish-ed in the usual way by the directable ruddens but may also be effected as follows: the dampers 33 will be operated now to close the air line to any particular set of jet propulsive units. Since the other dampers i are not affected the airship is constrained to follow the elected course.

The inlow of induced currents of air having been started by rotation of the fans or propellers 22, the air, through the tubes 16 in front of the airship is conveyed into the combustion chamber of the series of jet propulsive units l5, the hot gases of combustion impinging all around the periphery of the craft due to the circular series of these units therearound, as the gases emerge out of the nozzles 14 thereof.

The high pressure air stream sucked into thc conduits 44 by the propeller fan S0 in the air tunnel 4S, are shunted into the jet-propulsive units 30 and directly into the jet propulsive unit 34 in the air tunnel 2S and around the unit 34 in channel 35, being conveyed iso as to emerge from the nozzles of the jet propulsive units, instead of ordinarily retarding the forward motion of the airship; these receive the impetus of a direct boost for these streams of cold air passed along through the air tunnels, this being eficiently accomplished because of the rectilinear disposition of the line of ilo-w of such air streams internally and centrally but longitudinally of the air-ship.

These streams, after exiting through the ports 38 of the partition wall 37 and forcing under pressure the ap check valves to open, enter the ferrule and are here snperheated to become more volatile in full potency, after being mixed with the onrushing hot gases emanating from the nozzles of the propulsive units 30 and 34. When the darnpcrs are selectively operated the airship can be kept well on an even keel in a balanced Way, depending upon right or left change of direction of movement.

What I claim and seek by Letters Patent is:

1. In an airship an elongated hollow tubular shell having a front semispherical nose through the periphery of which projects circumferentially and divergingly so as to point to the rear a series of jet propulsive nozzles, said shell having at its rear a frusto-conical extension surrounded externally by a circumferential series of coaxially extending steering vanes starting at the widest portion of extension and terminating at the discharge end of said shell, a second circurnferentially and divergingly disposed `series of jet propulsive units having nozzles projecting outside said extension between said vanes, a series of airintake nozzles circumferentially projecting outside said shell and pointing towards the first named jet propulsive nozzles and originating in front of said extension and having conduit spreading portions connected to the second named jet propulsive nozzles, and air intakes for the rst series of jet propulsive nozzles opening out of the nose of said shell.

2. In aircraft as described, in combination, a tubular body terminating in a frusto-conical extension also hollow, and tapering to a discharge opening which is alined with a central rectilinear tunnel disposed coaxially with said extension and made integral with conduits supplied with air by nozzles projecting through said body and pointing towards the front of said body, a circular series of jet propulsive units divergingly surrounding said tunnel and projecting with nozzles out of the outermost tapering end of said extension, and being interconnected with air sections integral with said tunnel and said conduits, a jet propulsive unit concentrically located in said tunnel around the periphery of which air mixing with ultimate products of combustion inside said tunnel may be pinpointed out of said extension discharge opening under pressure from said tunnel by means in advance of said last named jet propul- ,sive units.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,708,803 Schaefer Apr. 9, 1929 1,953,977 Roth Apr. 10, 1934 2,465,457 Johnston Mar. 29, 1949 2,478,792 Trey Aug. 9, 1949 2,696,079 Kappus Dec. 7, 1954 2,875,578 Kadosch et al. Mar. 3, 1959 FOREIGN PATENTS 403,730 France Oct. 2, 1909 364,410 Great Britain Ian. 7, 1932 214,228 Australia July 12, 1956 1,168,084 France Aug. 25, 1958 

1. IN AN AIRSHIP AN ELONGATED HOLLOW TUBULAR SHELL HAVING A FRONT SEMISPHERICAL NOSE THROUGH THE PERIPHERY OF WHICH PROJECTS CIRCUMFERENTIALLY AND DIVERGINGLY SO AS TO POINT TO THE REAR A SERIES OF JET PROPULSIVE NOZZLES, SAID SHELL HAVING AT ITS REAR A FRUSTO-CONICAL EXTENSION SURROUNDED EXTERNALLY BY A CIRCUMFERENTIAL SERIES OF COAXIALLY EXTENDING STEERING VANES STARTING AT THE WIDEST PORTION OF EXTENSION AND TERMINATING AT THE DISCHARGE END OF SAID SHELL, A SECOND CIRCUMFERENTIALLY AND DIVERGINGLY DISPOSED SERIES OF JET PROPULSIVE UNITS HAVING NOZZLES PROJECTING OUTSIDE SAID EXTENSION BETWEEN SAID VANES, A SERIES OF AIRINTAKE NOZZLES CIRCUMFERENTIALLY PROJECTING OUTSIDE SAID SHELL AND POINTING TOWARDS THE FIRST NAMED JET PROPULSIVE NOZZLES AND ORIGINATING IN FRONT OF SAID EXTENSION AND HAVING CONDUIT SPREADING PORTIONS CONNECTED TO THE SECOND NAMED JET PROPULSIVE NOZZLES, AND AIR INTAKES FOR THE FIRST SERIES OF JET PROPULSIVE NOZZLES OPENING OUT OF THE NOSE OF SAID SHELL. 